Hollowed Shell
by GunMetalX
Summary: Post SSS- Motoko Kusanagi rejoined Section 9 after the events of SSS, however the memory of Hideo Kuze's death is still a painful memory that never ceases to leave her alone. However, one day she got a mysterious message from The Laughing Man Copy, what does he want? And how does this relate to Hideo Kuze?


It had been a few months since Motoko rejoined Section 9, and things settled back down to somewhat normal ever since the Solid State incident. They were able to keep a limited press blackout without too many details leaking about the Puppeteer, and their real identity. After all, nobody was really _knew_ who he really was, or what drove him to do the things he did. That fact alone could cause the general public to uproar about security and cyber brain hacking, but luckily, none of that ever happened thanks to Aramaki and Togusa. For the time being they were quite satisfied to be called for assistance, but nothing as extreme as The Laughing Man or the Individual Eleven incident.

Motoko sat in front of monitor, one leg crossed over the other, and biting at her thumbnail while Ishikawa was diving to find political money trails. She had to admit the job was slow, but she had been assigned the task of uncovering the individuals that were causing problems for Prime Minister Kayabuki's reelection campaign. So far, they were able to find some of the culprits, but it was only a matter of time before she and Ishikawa found everyone involved, especially with Ishikawa's skills backing her up. She smiled as she recalled the look of relief Aramaki had, knowing Kayabuki would not have problems with the reelection. As much as he hated to admit it aloud, he was very happy being in constant contact with her.

However, that same sensation gave Motoko a sinking feeling. She knew what it was like, being with someone you're comfortable with; although short lived, she never felt quite the same thing with someone else. Her mind drifted to Batou for a moment. He was very special to her, almost like the brother she never had, and could trust without fail. Hideo Kuze, however, was another story. She vaguely remembered hearing his voice through her coma and heavy sedatives. She instantly bit her nail harder, remembering his small voice as he told everyone he wanted to make paper cranes so she could wake up. A kind and selfless act from a person she never knew, who had these strong feeling for her; it was only natural for her to feel something as strong in exchange. In many ways Motoko regretted leaving him in the hospital. She cursed her impatience in proving that she could make the cranes. Maybe if she never left, things could have been different between them. Maybe everything would have been different.

She got an incoming personal message. Quickly she snapped out of her deep thoughts; the message was encrypted and heavily protected. It looked suspicious, but was able to pass by undetected by public security. She quickly put on her eyepiece and investigated the message, only to find it impossible to find a sender or content without actually opening it.

"Tachikoma, are you online?" she asked.

"Yes, Major!" appeared the Tachikoma, waving at her from his little comm icon cheerfully.

"Can you find the origin of this message I just received? It's a bit suspicious," she said as her eyes narrowed and tapped her nails on the brushed metal keyboard.

"Of course, Major, just give me a moment! I'll be done in a jiffy!" he added with a little salute before starting the inspection

The Major paused her tapping and raised an eyebrow, _A jiffy?_ she asked herself. _Where did they learn this kind of vintage vocabulary?_ It was a given that the Tachikoma were exploring the net without authorization, though she never expected them to take a liking to old mannerism and expressions.

"Major, there is no exact sender! However, it has no attack barriers or viruses of any kind, the only problem is that it wants to be opened only by you. It is directed only toward you, not to Section 9, so nobody else can tamper with it, what are you planning to do?"

Motoko paused for a second and lowered the eye viewer. "I'm about to dive, back me up, Tachikoma, and give no report to anyone of the current situation. The last thing I want is to drag more people into my personal strife's, understood?"

"Roger, Major, preparing to assist you at your command!" Tachikoma added with another salute

"Ishikawa," she said as she shifted her seat directly across from him, the elder man turned as he raised his eyepiece, "Yes, Major?"

"I'm tending to some personal matters, do not disturb me unless you've found time critical information. If not, report back to Aramaki directly," she said firmly, disguising her concern.

Ishikawa raised his eyebrows and scratched his beard, "Well that was sudden, you okay there, Major? If it's anything serious or regarding Solid State-"

"It's nothing, trust me," she added with a small smile. "It's just something I need to take care of."

Ishikawa nodded, "Of course, Major."

The Major nodded and turned her chair back to eyepiece, secured everything, and opened the encrypted message that responded to her IP. As she opened the message, she saw a single phrase.

" _Meet me at the usual spot._ "

Before Motoko could contemplate which spot the messenger may have been referring to, she saw a very familiar icon at the bottom; a smiling icon with rings, and its trademark J.D Salinger quote circling within those rings. She narrowed her eyes.

"Major? Is there something wrong?" the AI asked. "Who was the sender?"

Motoko snorted and smirked, "Just an old friend."

The Major was underway through the net with her over enthusiastic Tachikoma talking non-stop after discovering that the sender was The Laughing Man himself.

"Wow! So did you meet The Laughing Man in the flesh? That's amazing!" he said ecstatically.

"More like I was connected to his cyber brain to be exact," she said in a matter of fact tone. "But yes, we did meet, and he did save my life"

The Tachikoma giggled, and a slightly irritated Mokoto asked, "What's so amusing about me being in his cyber brain?"

"Sorry, Major, I wasn't laughing at you, but I couldn't help but notice that he was willing to go out of the way to save you not once, but twice without any hesitation."

"Well he needed me to download the information so I could find out the truth about the Murai vaccine, so I was not in the best moment to negotiate against him," she added flatly.

The Tachikoma raised an arm in objection, "But, Major, if he was able to get past _your_ defenses, he could have easily just hacked your brain and dropped everything there. Instead he took a much gentler approach, and even helped you after the attempted assassination on you. He must have a deep connection toward you, Major"

"What are you trying to imply, Tachikoma?" she asked briskly.

"Nothing, Major, just noting an observation," he said, twiddling his fingers anxiously.

"If I want your opinion about human relations I'll let you know, Tachikoma," she snapped.

"Right, Major," the AI added with a slight cringe and another salute, sure to stay silent as they continued traveling the net. She hated to admit it, but the Tachikoma raised a valid point. He did save her, and he even contained her in his own network so she would not shatter and fall apart. He also had the chance to eradicate her when she infiltrated the chat room about him, but he didn't. All he did was watch her. She didn't read too deep into his actions, but now the Tachikoma got her thinking. Although another part of her wanted to mentally slap her, she was actually listening and taking advice from an AI.

"I wonder what he wants from me this time," she added with suspicion.

Soon after, they arrived at the network server of the laughing man. Hidden and extremely protected as always, but the message served as a key to let her in. It didn't seem very dangerous; in fact nothing had seemed to change from the few years that passed since the last encounter.

"Tachikoma, stand guard, the key only lets me in, the barriers are sure to attack you if you decide to enter here. Stay put, I'll be out soon"

"What if you need help, Major?" the Tachikoma chirped

"You'll be the first to know, I'll be back," she added and entered, however all communication seemed to cut off the moment she stepped in. She felt herself fall into a void, all she saw was darkness.

The next thing she knew, she was back at the library, taken back by the situation. Usually when something went dire, there was some sort of damage or intrusion to her system. But, if anything, it seemed she was contained in a private conversation, sealed off by an incredible defense. Motoko slowly walked through the labyrinth of the library. Oddly enough there were new books in The Laughing Man's possession. She paused at one of the shelves; a lot of these books were pre-war. She laid a finger on the spine, "Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea," she frowned. The book wasn't that old since it always had an edition that was made. She pulled it out and skimmed a few pages, and realized there were some outright noticeable differences, the language for one. It was a much older version of English, from before the turn of the 20th century.

"That one was a hard one to get, that edition in particular," rang out a young man's voice.

Motoko turned and saw him. The Laughing Man copy slowly approaching to her.

"Why did you call me? I hardly think it's for a date," she asked as she put the book back onto the shelf, only to get a laugh from the boy.

"A date? I'd be a very bad one for not getting back to you these past few years, Major," he said with a small smile, Motoko couldn't help but chuckle.

"So what's with the enforced security? I don't remember that being active while I was here"

"Correction, Major, it was always there but I temporarily lowered them when you accessed me after your….attempted assassination. They have gotten upgrades of course, a class A hacker needs to be on the top of the latest software and protection but the defenses themselves have always been here, undetectable but there"

"So we're pretty much closed in right?" she said looking around for a bit.

"Correct, nobody but us can hear this conversation, consider it as a very private chat room with no uninvited guests," he said with a nod.

"How exclusive…" she added and paused. "I see you look identical as we last me a few years ago. You were still a young boy, so I expected to see some differences but it is if as time passed you by."

He shrugged in response. "I would have chosen my current appearance, but you might not have recognized me, and would have been under the belief of being hacked by someone who claimed to be me. It was just a precautionary measure; last I recall I am not the only one to use avatars on the web, am I right? Especially over seductive ones," he said glancing at her with a slight amusement in his eyes.

"It gets the job done," she added curtly, raising an eyebrow, a bit uncomfortable at Aoi's suggestive look.

"Anywho, it seems that you're still sporting the Laughing Man look, trying to live up to the part?" she asked, not trying to go too deep about Chroma's revealing clothing, and instead decided to focus on his clothing. He was still wearing his trademark blue coat, minus the hat covering his face. He absentmindedly looked at his coat and tugged on it as he shrugged.

"Getup? I've always worn this, it only became famous after the attempted assassination, a lot of youth wear this too you know, being fans of the Laughing Man and all"

She smiled as she cocked her head, "Are there still any fans loyal to you?"

"It pretty much died down, especially with the whole Individual Eleven that took center stage my popularity plummeted. However, it does please me that there are a few sites that have some strong loyal fans," he said as he put his hands into his pockets.

At the mention of the Individual Eleven, Motoko felt a tug in her lower chest. All of a sudden, the overall good feeling she had talking with him was gone, and she again wondered why she came here.

"So why did you bring me here?" she said, tone not as playful as before, this caught Aoi off for a brief moment.

"That was abrupt, impatient are we, Major Kusanagi? I thought when friends haven't seen each other for a long time, they engage in small talk before getting to the meat of the matter," he added as he leaned onto the bookcase

"Well you didn't talk to me when I was solo from Section 9, so why now?" she asked

Aoi chuckled as he leaned against the bookcase. "Hideo Kuze," he replied firmly.

Motoko's eyes widened, unable to mask her indifference, "What do you know of him?"

"Who doesn't know of him? The hero of the refugees in Japan that wanted to form an independent country. Although he was captured by Section 9 only for him to be killed shortly after," he said bluntly, only to enrage Motoko.

"He was murdered by a third party," she added venomously.

"I am aware of that, not only because I saw the files proving that he was killed by government individuals, but because I know Section 9 never received such an order," he said grimly. "Not that you would ever allow it due to your history with him."

Motoko took a step back but Aoi never faltered. The Major didn't need to say anything, but Aoi knew what was going on in her mind

"You forget that Hideo Kuze was linked to many individuals, and they all knew everything they needed to know about him, not to mention your little…moment, while under the rubble. I think a lot of people must have been confused at that point. Anywho, it was accessible data that anyone could get, but I'm sure most didn't. It was irrelevant to the war, and I never saw people taking action toward or against you after his death."

"Get to the point," Motoko snapped.

Aoi nodded, "Very well. As you know, his ideas, his vision, they are just data in the network. All the refugees downloaded them in real time, and saw what he saw. Nevertheless, after he was captured and later killed, a lot of those refugees lost hope and released all the data into the net. It was useless to them now. However, something caught my eye as I was exploring that trashed data," he said as Motoko listened eagerly, crossing her arms to disguise it

"All the people that came into contact with him also came into contact with his ghost. It could be possible that a copy was made, but in fragmental amounts of course. These fragments were scattered all over the net, naturally I became intrigued by this phenomenon, so I gathered and stored those fragments."

He walked over and sat on a metal bookcase ladder and put his hand under his chin eyes drifting into the distance, "That's when things got interesting. A few months into my search I came across what seemed to be a ghost inside of a virtual storage facility. It was abandoned, beaten down but still held its ground." He then turned to her, "Were you aware that Hideo Kuze wanted to transfer his ghost into the net?"

Motoko frowned, "Not that I-"

" _I don't want to have a prosthetic body, I want my mind and ghost to roam the net freely."_

"So you did," he replied for her. "Well it was an avatar, just like your Chroma one. It seemed he was in the process of transferring himself to the net; it is a very strange file. It has memories, but it has something…I would dare a ghost, but nobody really knows what the essence of a ghost is, so I'm not entirely sure."

"…so…is he?"

"No. The Hideo Kuze you knew is gone along with his ghost, but there were elements, memories and feelings of him that were so strong, they continued to exist without him. After a few years, I was able to piece together all of the data left by the refugees, along with what was in that avatar and well, it's a very good shadow of him. It was a meticulous process, but somehow he managed to develop a primitive form of self, he knows who he is, but seems aware that he is not himself either."

"So it's a data copy?"

"It's a close copy of the real thing…however…as you can imagine it is pretty unstable. Unlike you that you were able to roam freely though this library, Hideo cannot, but, I saw something, the reason that made me call you."

He looked at her, "It was one memory; an event the both of you shared. That alone kept him together, a desire to see you again perhaps. After all, he spent years looking for you, it's only fair that he would want to say his last words to you."

By the time he finished, Motoko was looking at the ground, clenched fists, "Why?"

"Hmm?"

Motoko looked up at him, sadness reflecting her eyes "Why did you bother putting him together? Hideo Kuze has been dead for years. Nothing can bring him back."

Aoi paused and took a deep breath, "I wasn't going to at first, but after finding that memory…I wanted to as a form of repayment," he said as he rubbed his hands.

"For what?"

"Thanks to you, the truth of the vaccine was released, many have been able to be treated and lives have been saved. Although I saved your ghost from falling apart, it didn't feel like I did enough to repay your actions"

"So you decided to rebuild him for me?" she said with a hint of disdain and pain.

"He was already there, I just put it together, besides, not everyone has the luxury of saying goodbye to a loved one twice." He looked down to his shoes, "I have lost people, just like you. You have no idea what would I give to see them one more time, even if were a hollowed version of who they once were."

Motoko only stared at him, feeling an unknown sensation throughout her body. Aoi looked up at her and closed his eyes. There was a brief moment of silence before a deep, handsome voice spoke from behind her.

"I think I've seen you before."

Motoko whipped around, instantly reaching for the gun in her pocket, only to be reminded that The Laughing Man bans weapon usage in his library. Hideo raised his arms in defense, his face didn't have the usual stoic expression; he looked concerned.

"Sorry, you just feel very familiar to me, have we met before? I didn't mean to frighten you."

She felt her body slacken as she slowly stood from her defensive stance.

"You…don't remember?" she said somewhat softly.

"I can't describe what I'm feeling… I feel like I've been asleep for a long time…and things are slowly coming back to me," he added before glancing to the side, clearly bothered by the subject.

Motoko glanced at Aoi and he spoke to her mentally, " _I told you he was pretty incomplete."_

" _It could have been worse…"_ she replied before turning back to him, releasing her hand from her holster. "Do you remember who _you_ are?"

Hideo paused before looking at his hand and flexed it absent mindedly, "I don't remember my child name….because…I was in an accident, and I got a prosthetic body. I remember being called Hideo Kuze."

"That's right. Who were the ones that called you by that?"

Hideo' hand stopped flexing as his eyes lit up, "The refugees, they named me their comrade and I became their leader. They needed help and I wanted to help them change their lives"

The Major sighed and approached him, "You're right on the money, so tell me, what do you plan on doing now? Become the almighty leader of the refugees again?"

She saw him furrow his eyebrows before responding, "I only hope that my ideas and actions were enough for the refugees to continue their fight for freedom and…" he looked at her tenderly. "With people like you around, I'm sure things won't spiral out of control"

"So you _do_ remember me?" she asked

"You're a police officer…although not public defense," he added as he approached her, he glanced at her shoulder emblem. "Section 9 Security Regiment…"

"And I was sent to arrest you," she said grimly.

"Which you did," he added to her statement.

Motoko stayed quiet at the last part, she wasn't sure if she had what it takes to say that he died thanks to her lack of security.

"We were trapped under a large amount of debris, the enemy was launching missiles at the refugees," he started slowly as he gripped her shoulder. "Your leg was trapped, but you didn't seem under any apparent pain." He tilted her chin to meet him in the eyes, "You have a prosthetic body, just like mine, just like her…"

He slowly gave her a warm smile, "Same ruby-red eyes, same purple hair…"

"I can build paper cranes very well with my left hand," she said gently as his eyes widened, and he suddenly let her go and took her into a strong embrace. She took in a sharp breath, for being only a mere shell he felt like the authentic Kuze that had hugged her when they were sure the atomic device was going to kill them. But, before she could say anything he resumed talking.

"I spent many years looking for you. I shouldn't have been so brash and demand that you make a paper crane with your new prosthetic body…it was a silly and childish request that ultimately pushed me away from you. It takes many, many years for one to master a complete prosthetic body, especially with such delicate motor functions"

Motoko only hugged him tighter in response, eyes hot with tears that were threatening to come out.

"I should be to blame too; I should have done something else and not just run away. I was pretty stupid to believe that you would still be there," she said. "By the time I could make a somewhat decent crane, you had already got yourself a prosthetic body and left." She snorted and continued, "So we're both responsible for our separation, we were children after all." She finished with a sad smile as she rested her chin on his shoulder.

Hideo slowly released her from his embrace and cupped her face. "But we met again, even in these situations, I got to see you again," he said with a warm smile. "I liked that they kept essential elements of you when they created your mature prosthetic body, especially the eyes."

If she could have, Motoko have blushed. "I wasn't going to be a new person that is completely different you know..but..I wished I could see you as you really were."

Hideo raised an eyebrow, "I can tell you disapprove of my face." He paused, "You're right; this isn't the real one. It is more like an idealized version of my original one. It was made by an artist so as a result it's not easy to move it."

"It's the price to pay for having a handsome face," she chuckled lightly, Kuze only smiled.

"Sense of humor hasn't changed at all I see."

"I had one back then?" she asked.

"A bit, although I never laughed, you always tried to make me. It honestly couldn't have killed me to laugh once. I remember the time you couldn't use your scooter anymore because your weight bent the platform to stand on. The look on your face was very….unforgettable," he said, a bittersweet, melancholic smile on his features.

Motoko smiled sweetly, "I'm really happy to have seen you again Kuze…"

Kuze only took her by the shoulder and sighed sharply, "I get the feeling this might be the last time we do."

Motoko felt her eyes sting and this time she hugged him strongly. While shocked, Kuze returned the hug a bit more gently.

" _Major, it's—"_

" _Already?"_

" _He dosen't have a lot of time left, his data is breaking down at a considerable rate. Like I said, he was incomplete and I do mean heavily incomplete. Without his ghost—"_

" _I'll make it quick, promise."_

"… _sorry…Good luck, Major,_ " Aoi added.

Motoko slowly pulled out of his embrace and tilted his chin toward her. Kuze furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"What are you—" he said before Motoko pushed her lips against his. She was aware that Kuze no longer had any time left, but if this kiss was the last thing she was going to get from him, she might as well make it count. Kuze's lips were tense at first but he eventually responded to a much more gentle, loving rhythm. Motoko knew he was a fake, that nothing about him was close to being real, but everything was screaming against the fact. The warmth, the embrace, even his soft lips moving against her were too real to be disregarded as a fake moment. Eventually she gently broke off and placed her forehead against his.

"I have to go," she said with firmly shut eyes, not bearing to look at his sorrowful stare.

She felt Kuze tighten his grip, only to release her. "I understand," he whispered. He slowly let her go, Motoko looked up at him before glancing sideways, "Thank you."

"For what?" Kuze asked

"For not forgetting me," she said with a sad smile.

Kuze smiled and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small paper crane, "I never could, live well…for the both of us."

"I will, always."

Motoko took numerous deep breaths, asking to be left alone before Kuze completely disintegrated before her. He was just bits and pieces of data, but like Aoi said, he was very close to being the real thing, the only thing missing was his ghost.

"Are you ready, Motoko?" Aoi asked as he slowly walked towards her. He was very aware of the way she walked away after Kuze's disintegration. If Aoi's eyes weren't playing tricks on him, he could have sworn he saw tears in her eyes.

She paused and nodded, "Ready."

"You should come and visit often," Aoi commented.

"What?"

"You're the only class A- hacker I know of that won't try to rip me apart, it'd be nice to chat sometime, well, anywhere you'd want to. I don't have a lot of friends, so a good chat would be of service."

Motoko smiled, "You certainly need to work on those communication skills of yours," she added humorously. "You should really consider working for Section 9, the offer's still open, we'd be free to chat anytime you want."

Aoi chuckled as he scratched his head, "Let me think about it."

"Alright, everyone would like you though, especially the Tachikomas."

"I highly doubt the big man with the cyber eyes would like me, I did hack his eyes after all."

Motoko couldn't but laugh. When she stopped she took a deep breath, "Thank you."

Aoi smiled, "As people would say before the war, 'we're even Steven'."

The Tachikoma completed its umpteenth scan of the security vault the Major went it. He took her warning carefully as a virus got fried from one of the defense softwares. It was heavily protected and he lost track of how long she had been in there. Contemplating if he should call any of his brothers, Motoko exited the vault, safe and sound.

"Major! I was so worried about you! Are you okay? What happened in there?!" Tachikoma chirped anxiously.

"I'm fine, no need to worry," she said assuring. "Come on, let's go back."

"What happened in there, Major? You were in there for a long period of time."

"Nothing serious," she said. "Just tied some loose ends….tell me, Tachikoma, do you know of the expression 'even Steven'?"

"Huh? No I haven't, was it a pre-war expression?"

"Most likely, I thought you'd be interested in looking into it," The Major replied.

"Can we? That sounds really fascinating!"

"Knock yourself out, I won't deprive you from exploring the net," she said. "Take it as a reward for helping me today."

"Thank you, Major! I can't wait to Synchronize all this info with my brothers!"

The Tachikoma started to ramble aimlessly but Motoko's mind had already drifted elsewhere, back to Kuze's last words to her.

" _I will live well and I will never forget you….I promise."_


End file.
